This has, most definitely, been an amazing two weeks of service, learning, and fun. The majority of the experiences that I have had here in Nicaragua have been indescribable ones that I will never forget. Before I leave for the states I have a few last observations:
1. There are different types of poverty. Working with Habitat in Trenton, I can easily say that I see poverty every day. Whether it be the parents of the students I tutor at Learning Lab or the homeless people that I pass on the street from time to time walking from my car or the Bonner van, I cannot deny that poverty is extremely prevelant in Trenton and in all of the US. But being here in Nica has exposed me to various other "kinds" of poverty (for lack of a better word). I have worked with kids who have one pair of clothes, whose parents work at American owned factories that pay them about $2 a day (give or take a few cents), and encountered countless children who sniff glue to make them feel less hungry, and others who flock to the streets all night to make a few extra Cordobas so that their family can eat. The poverty her has been like anything I have seen in my life, and while I gave with I could at my service sites (working with these populations), I wish there was more I could do.
2. "Need" is an ever changing and culturally defined word. Pat asked each site team to sit down with the directors at our sites and have a conversation addressing the needs, necesidades, of the organization. Being that I have been at Los Quinchos: Casa Lago for the majority of the time that I have been here, Karina, Hannah, and I sat down with Freddy to have this conversation. He asked if the kids could be involved in the conversation (which I thought was great and was very impressed by). So we started off by explaining our purpose to them and asking them a simple question "What do you need here, that you don't currently have?" The playful and talkative group of teenagers that we had been enteracting with for over a week now responded in complete silence. Then one of them, Christian, spoke up saying something along the lines of, "We have everything we need." Looking at these kids who have been wearing the same clothes since the day I met them and walking around barefoot on the hard and dirty ground for the majority of the time I have been there, I was completely speachless. "We have everything we need, I have shoes, a bookbag, a place to sleep and clothes. That is everything I need." The others nodded their heads in agreement. It took us a good five minutes and rephrasing the question three times for them to start telling us that they only have one outfit each, their bookbags are falling apart, and academic and extracurricular programs at the location are falling apart due to a lack of significant funds. I found this experience worth noting because of the way in which it struck me. Had I asked the same question to even the poorest american child, I am not quite sure if I would have been greeted with even a remotely similar response.
3. While there is no simple or easy beauricratic way of fixing the problem that is Nicaragua, this does not mean that we as individual Americans are useless. One would have to be quite a powerful person, actually one would have to be a god, to fix all of the injustices in Nicaragua single handedly (or even with just one NGO or organization), but every little bit helps: awareness, spreading the word, getting funds and people to come and help out. When we return, in addition to sharing our experiences with everyone that we can, us "Nicaragua 2012" Bonners will be selling bracelets made by the Los Quinchos kids in order to raise much needed funds for the orginization. We hope not only to raise funds, but also to create a sustained relationship with them. We will be selling them for $5 each. See any of us for details.
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